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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/26483950">Accidents Happen</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/bellyboohoo/pseuds/bellyboohoo'>bellyboohoo</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>What If... [1]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Haikyuu!!</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Accident, Angst, Blood, Character Death, Drama, Fighting, Gen, Head Injury, Hinata and Kageyama Fight, Hurt Hinata Shouyou, Injury, Major character death - Freeform, Sad, fight</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-10-12</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-10-12</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-06 10:42:57</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>1,725</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/26483950</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/bellyboohoo/pseuds/bellyboohoo</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>What if, when Kageyama and Hinata had fought, something had gone wrong? What if, Kageyama hadn't thrown Hinata to the floor but into the net pole? What if Hinata had hit his head on one of the jagged screws? What if Hinata hadn't gotten up?</p><p>----</p><p>TW: Major Character Death, Blood Loss, Head Injury</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Hinata Shouyou &amp; Kageyama Tobio</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>What If... [1]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/series/1926370</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>4</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>50</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Accidents Happen</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The smack of the volleyballs hitting the gymnasium floor had become a repeating mantra in Hinata's head. Each one of them screamed at him as if saying <em>failure, failure, failure</em>. He hated it.</p><p>If he could just hit one ball, perform that <em>one </em>quick, then he could prove to Kageyama and the rest of his team that he was better, that he was getting better. That he was worthy of staying on the court and not just the best at their single quick attack.</p><p>He grunted as he aimed to hit another, missing yet again. Panting in anger and frustration, he turned to his taller teammate. "Mooikai! One more time!"</p><p>That "one more time" would be the thirtieth time the shorter boy had said that.</p><p>Kageyama glared at him, just as tired and frustrated at the redhead in front of him. He was sick of it, sick of the repeated failed attempts, sick of watching Hinata build himself for success only to miss and fall in the end. He'd get hurt if he kept going at this point, overexerting himself would do no good for him or the team.</p><p>"Instead of practicing an attack we're not sure you'll ever be able to do," he started with words fueled by anger, "you should be working on the attacks we've been using, as well as serving and blocking!"</p><p>"But if this quick doesn't work, there's no point in me being on the court!"</p><p>"And I told you, your will isn't needed for that quick! I'll give you tosses that won't be stopped by blocks!"</p><p>"But then I'll never get better!"</p><p>Yachi stared from behind the empty basket, nervousness pulsing through her as she watched the boys get further agitated with each other. <em>Should I stop them? </em>She thought to herself. <em>No, what good would I do? They'd ignore me!</em></p><p>"The prelims for the spring tournament start next month. They're right around the corner." Kageyama took a step forward, hands balled into fists at his sides as he tried to convey the importance of their situation to Hinata. "What do you think will be an effective weapon for us?" He grabbed the shorter boy, holding him up to his own level of height. "A complete quick or an absolutely useless attack? Ha?!"</p><p>Yachi trembled, fear blanketing her face as their argument escalated. She'd hoped they'd calm down by now, but if anything, the situation was getting worse and not better. <em>Maybe I really should step in--</em></p><p>"N-No fighting guys! Calm down, Kageyama-kun!"</p><p>Hinata glared at the ravenette. Why couldn't he see it? Why couldn't he see his strive for growth? <em>He never had to worry about getting better, </em>he thought to himself. <em>He's always been great at his position, never had to fight for anything as hard as I have. He doesn't understand!</em></p><p>The redhead grabbed Kageyama's hand, a retort burning on his tongue. "I want to be strong enough to compete by myself!"</p><p>There. There it was. The truth, the drive behind Hinata's sudden frustration and anger over not being able to complete the quick successfully. A pang embedded itself in Kageyama's chest as he continued to hold his smaller partner up by the collar of his shirt.</p><p>A sudden bout of anger overtook him in that moment. He forced both of his hands into the white-gray fabric, shaking the redhead violently. "Your selfishness is going to destroy the team's balance!"</p><p>He threw Hinata to the floor, watching as his body skidded against the shiny paneling. Hinata cried out at the feeling of his head cracking against the hardwood, surprise and disorientation being pushed to the back of his mind as he struggled to get up.</p><p>Yachi took a step closer to the entryway. "L-Let's all... Let's all be friends, o-okay?!" She attempted to shout out to them, but her voice was nothing more than a shaky and stuttering beg.</p><p>Kageyama turned away. "I'll toss to anyone who's essential to winning."</p><p>Hinata grunted, the pain of his partner's words drilling into his chest. A flashback to the first time the ravenette had spoken them to him appeared, and it was then that he realized Kageyama had never truly seen him as good, never seen him as "essential" to or worthy of being on the court. </p><p>"And I don't feel any different now."</p><p>There it was, the final straw being pushed through the cap. That settled that.</p><p>Hinata pushed himself up through the dizziness swimming in his head. "K-Kageyama!" He screamed out, stumbling to his feet and propelling himself forward in an attempt to reach the taller boy before he left the gymnasium. He fell into the ravenette, squeezing his fingers and palms into his clothing in an attempt to keep himself grounded and still.</p><p>"Dammit! Let go!" Kageyama ordered, digging his hands into Hinata's body to try to push him off.</p><p>Hinata forced his pounding head up, pushing all his might into the glare he aimed at Kageyama. "I won't let go until you give me a toss!"</p><p>Yachi gasped, fear overtaking her as she stumbled out the entryway and screaming for help.</p><p>Agitated, Kageyama picked the smaller boy up and barreled his weight into throwing him off. He hadn't seen as the smaller boy's body fell toward the netting pole, hadn't heard the clang of his head against the metal, hadn't watched as the redhead slumped to the floor.</p><p>He turned instead to gather his breath, eyes blinking forcibly open and closed as he gathered his thoughts. <em>Did Hinata really just attack me?</em></p><p>Tanaka tumbled through the doors, a curse falling from his lips as he took in the scene before him. "What the Hell? Kageyama, what the fuck did you do?!"</p><p>Kageyama glanced up, shock forcing itself onto his face as he saw Hinata. The boy's body was still on the floor, a sheen and shining puddle of ruby red blood surrounding his unruly curls. The ravenette stumbled forward, hands reaching for his short partner with the whisper of his name on his lips.</p><p>Tanaka pushed him away, hands shaking as he leaned over the unmoving first year. "Stay away! You've done enough already!" Turning toward the redhead, Tanaka stifled a whimper as he brushed the sweaty, crimson red-stained curls of his kouhai. "Hinata-kun, can you hear me?"</p><p>Silence greeted him.</p><p>"Yachi, call for an ambulance! See if you can find Ukai-kun or Takeda-sensei."</p><p>The younger girl hurriedly called for emergency services while rushing back out of the gymnasium in search of the two older men.</p><p>Tanaka took out his own cellphone, hurriedly texting the third-years to turn around from their walk home. His fingers were swift in typing out the messages, watching as the kanji and hiragana overtook his screen. Tossing his phone down beside him, he quickly pulled off his hat and stuffed it against the wound on the side of Hinata's head in an attempt to stop the blood flow.</p><p>Kageyama was in shock. He stood stock-still, staring down at the scene before himself. <em>How did I do that? </em>He questioned himself, replaying the moments in which he'd thrown Hinata back in his mind. <em>I thought I'd thrown him to the floor?</em></p><p>Noticing that Tanaka's hat was quickly becoming soaked, the first year peeled off his shirt and handed it to the bald boy. "I didn't mean for this to happen," he found himself saying. "I thought... I was just trying to get him off of me."</p><p>"It doesn't matter now," Tanaka growled. "We just have to make sure he stays alive." Tanaka pinched at Hinata's arm, trying to force the boy awake. "Come on, Hinata. Wake up. Wake up!"</p><p>The whir of an ambulance siren started up in the distance, the sound growing louder as it got closer and closer to Karasuno. Yachi returned with a disheveled Ukai in tow, the older man rushing forward. "How did this happen?"</p><p>"W-We were arguing," Kageyama stuttered out. "And then he attacked me. I tried to throw him off... I didn't realize he'd hit the pole."</p><p>"This is why we tell you guys to leave after practice is finished," the blonde stated. Leaning down, Ukai checked to see if the young boy was still breathing. Muttering out a curse, he began CPR. "Don't put too much pressure on that wound, Tanaka. We don't want to irritate it further." Bending down, Ukai did his best to push air into Hinata's mouth. "How long is that damn ambulance going to take?"</p><p>"They're just down the road!" Yachi explained, her face a light hue of green from watching Tanaka attempt to wipe up the blood around him. Instead, it just smeared across the floor.</p><p>Ukai continued the repeated chest compressions and air administration. To Kageyama, it didn't look to be working. His friend, his partner was lying on the floor; so pale and motionless, it scared the setter. <em>What have I done? I... If he dies, I'll be a <strong>murderer</strong>.</em></p><p>The hurried patter of feet against the ground carried into the gymnasium as the EMTs finally appeared. Kageyama hadn't even heard how loud the sirens had gotten, even though they were just feet away from him.</p><p>It was like he was watching a movie. Everyone around him was doing something but he was just standing there, watching it all happen. He was frozen in place, unsure of where to be or what to do.</p><p>When the ambulance drove away with Hinata, Kageyama had known the minute the sirens had died out three minutes later. It'd only been confirmed later that night.</p><p>Hinata died on the ride to the hospital. A seizure, they'd said. A direct result of his head injury.</p><p>A head injury that Kageyama himself had caused.</p><p>It was a few days later, after the funeral he hadn't been allowed to attend, that Kageyama removed himself from the Karasuno boy's volleyball team. A month later, he dropped out of school and started working full time for a grocer two cities away. It was the only job he could do without feeling like he'd immediately shut down, without feeling like he'd be able to hurt someone again.</p><p>Because after all, it'd all been his fault. Hinata's injury, Hinata not waking up, Hinata's death. Everything. He was the one to blame.</p><p>And he would take that guilt and regret with him to his grave only two years later.</p>
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